How fickle football is, with David Moyes, architect of such illustrious success down at the London Stadium, facing scrutiny over the longevity of his tenure after a poor run of results, the Scotsman’s pragmatic style of play creating something of a schism.
Still, the holding Europa Conference League champions – who await Freiburg in the last 16 of the Europa League this week – indeed seem to have put the recent malaise to bed and have reclaimed a seventh-place spot in the table, just two points behind Manchester United.
Defeating Everton at Goodison Park last time out, the Hammers overcame adversity to rattle the hosts with a late flurry, all three scorers (Kurt Zouma, Tomas Soucek, Edson Alvarez) and assist-makers (James Ward-Prowse, Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen) signed under Moyes’ leadership.
The 60-year-old has sculpted a bright future, and while he is out of contract at the end of the season, his influence is unrivalled across the club’s recent history, with the players reflecting this.
David Moyes’ best West Ham signings
West Ham have certainly had something of a chequered history on the transfer front, especially in the years preceding Moyes’ reign, with finances disbursed on high-profile stars who arrived with much promise and fanfare only to leave with a whimper.
Sebastien Haller and Felipe Anderson are two salient names who spring to mind, but that is not an exhaustive list by any stretch, and one of Moyes’ hallmarks is the focusing and polishing, of transfer strategy.
Just one month after he was re-appointed in December 2019, Bowen was signed from Championship side Hully City in a £20m plus add-ons deal. Soucek arrived on loan that same window and completed a permanent move worth roughly £18m in the summer.
Declan Rice was not exactly signed under Moyes’ leadership but the England star was nurtured to the fore from the academy en route to silverware, joining Arsenal in a £105m transfer last summer.
